Ultra high speed bottle coating system and process

ABSTRACT

An ultra high speed bottle coating system and process utilizes an overhead chuck conveyor in conjunction with a bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor for the rapid transport and stabilization of a suspended file of bottles through at least one spray coat station having a bottle rotator therein.

United States Pate: 1

Frische [4 1 Sept. 2, 1975 1 ULTRA HIGH SPEED BOTTLE COATING SYSTEM ANDPROCESS Dale George Frische, Belleville, Ill.

[73] Assignee: Indian Head Inc., New York, NY.

[22] Filed: Mar. 22, 1974 [21] App]. No.: 453,829

[75] Inventor:

[52] US. Cl. 118/322; 65/60; 118/66;

118/69; 118/503; 198/137; 198/179 [51] Int. Cl. B0513 13/02 [58] Fieldof Search 118/320, 322, 324, 500,

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,695,595 11/1954 Hagerman118/502 3,270,710 9/1966 Johnson et a1 118/423 3,516,811 6/1970 Gatchetet a1. 65/60 PACKING TABLE 3,615,327 10/1971 McLary 65/60 3,734,7655/1973 Russell et 31.. 118/423 3,741,744 6/1973 Bowman 65/60 3,764,28410/1973 Rowe 65/60 3,765,856 10/1973 Bowman 118/324 3,823,686 7/1974Snyder 118/322 Primary ExaminerMervin Stein Assistant Examiner-DouglasSalser Attorney, Agent, or FirmBrumbaugh, Graves, Donohue & Raymond [57] ABSTRACT An ultra high speed bottle coating system and processutilizes an overhead chuck conveyor in conjunction with a bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor for the rapid transport and stabilization of asuspended file of bottles through at least one spray coat station havinga bottle rotator therein.

4 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures J- STACKER CURING OVEN 3! HEATING SECTION JBOTTLE CONVEYOR 4 BOTTOM STABILIZING CONVEYOR LOADING STATION UNPACKINGTABLE UNLOADING STATION PRIME COAT PRIME COAT BOOTH TOP COAT BOTTOMBOOTH DRYER DRYER PATENTED SEP 21975 SHEU 2 BF 7 Eoom P400 wEEm PMENTEB2 I 5 SPiU 3 BF 7 mm mo EOPFOm mw mo P400 mEEm PATENTED 1975 SHEEFIBEYULTRA HIGH SPEED BOTTLE COATING SYSTEM AND PROCESS The present inventionrelates to an ultra high speed bottle coating system and process.

In my copending US. application Ser. No. 404,034, filed Oct, 5, 1973,the disclosure of which ,is hereby incorporated by reference herein,there is] disclosed a high speed bottle coating system and process whichcomprises among its elements an overhead chuck convey or for rapidtransporting of a file of suspended bottles through one or more spraycoat stations having within the stations means for rotating or spinningthe suspended bottles while they are being spray coated so as to insurea uniform coating therearound. In my copendingrUS. application Ser. No.432,188, US. Pat. No. 3,869,249, filed .Ian. 10, 1974, the disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference herein, there is disclosed abottle chuck having asnap-on snapoff coupling which is particularlyuseful as the bottle chuck element of the overhead chuck conveyor of theaforesaid application and of the present application; in my copendingUS. application SenNo. 413,921, filed Nov. 8, I973, the disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference herein, there is disclosed aspin net or rotator assembly mechanism which. is particularly useful asthe rotator element in the spray coat stations of the same aforesaidapplication and of the present application; while in my copending US.application Ser. No. 453,828, filed Mar. 22, I974, now U.S. Pat. No.3,858,7l6, (Attorney's Docket No. 22,107), the disclosure of which ishereby incorporated by reference herein, there is disclosed a curingoven which is particularly useful as the curing oven element of the sameaforesaid application and of the present application.

The high speed bottle coating system disclosed in my copending U.S.applicationSer. No. 404,034, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,249 comprises, ingeneral, a sequential synchronized array of a bottle unpacking station,a single file bottle belt conveyor, an overhead chuck conveyor bottleloading station, at least one suspended bottle rotating and spray coatstation, a bottle bottom dryer, an overhead chuck conveyor bottleunloading station, a single file bottle belt conveyor, a multi-filebottle stacking station, a curing oven having heating andcoolingsections and a bottle packing station. In one ofthe variations orembodiments of that system, the suspended bottle rotating and spray coatstation comprises a bottle rotating and prime coat spray booth, a primecoat dryer and at least one bottle rotating and top coat spray station.In another variation orembodiment of that system, the bottle rotatingand top coat spray station comprises first and second .bottle rotatingand top coat spray booths. Ina further variation or embodiment of thatsystem, one of the bottle rotating and top coat spray booths has bothforward and reverse bottle rotators. l

The-high speed bottle coating process of my copending US. applicationSer. No. 404,034 comprises, in general, unpacking the bottles, conveyingsingle file bottles in an upright position to a bottle loading station,loading the bottlesby their finish onto an overhead chuck conveyor,rotating and spray coating the suspended bottles at least once, dryingthe coated bottle bottoms, unloading the coated bottles from the everstacker, stacking the coated bottles in muIti-files, curing and coolingthe coated bottles, and packing the coated bottles. In one of thevariations or embodiments of that process, the bottles are rotated andspray coated by rotating and spray prim e coating them, drying the primecoatedbottles, and rotating and spray top coating the dried prime coatedbottles. In other variations or embodiments of that process, the bottlesare rotated and spray top coated twice, preferably with the bottlesbeing both forwardly and rev'ersely rotated during one of the two bottlerotating and spray top coating steps.

That high speed bottle coating system is capable of operating at a highspeed such that 45-55 bottles per minute can be coated. However, if thatsystem is operated at a higher speed, then there is a tendency for thesuspended bottles held by their finish in the bottle chucks of theoverhead chuck conveyor to wobble. As a consequence, when the bottlesare spray top coated twice with a coating in the upper portion which isdifferent in color from the coating in the lower portion, there is thenan undesirable irregular line of demarca tion between the two top coats.Moreover, when that system is operated at a higher speed there is also atendency for the suspended bottles to fall free from the bottle chucksof the overhead. chuck conveyor, particularly during their rotation,resulting in costly bottle breakage and decreased throughput or bottlecoating production.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention toimprove that high speed bottle coating system and process so as toprovide an ultra high speed bottle coating system and process capable ofoperating at an ultra high speed such that -100 bottles per minute ormore can be spray coated without wobble of the suspended bottlesduringthe spray coating operation and "without appreciable bottle breakage.

In accordance with the present invention, the abovedescribed high speedbottle coating system is improved in that the at least one suspendedbottle rotating and spray coat stationhas a bottle bottom stabilizingconveyor with bottle bottom dimple engageable pivot pins in synchronizedparallel alignment and registration with bottle chucks of the overheadchuck conveyor.

There are several variations or embodiments of the ultra high speedbottle coating system of the present invention. Thus in one of thevariations or embodiments, the bottle bottom stabilizin'g conveyor hasan ascending track section adjacent the entry to the suspended bottlerotating and spray coat station for bringing the pivot pins intoengagement with the bottle bottom dimples and hasa descending tracksection adjacent the exit from the suspended bottle rotating and spraycoat station for bringing the pivot pins out of engagement with thebottle bottom dimples. In another variation or em bodiment, each pivotpin is spring loaded and has a notch in its face and the descendingtrack section has an inclined overhead bar in depression engagementpresent invention is an improvement upon thehigh speed bottle coatingprocess described above in that it further comprises rotating and spraycoating the suspended bottles at least once while engaging the bottlebottom dimples with stabilizing pivot pins.

The improved system and process of the present invention will'be morespecifically described in connection with the accompanying drawingswherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of the preferred improved system ofthe invention,

FIGS. 2A and 2B represent a diagrammatic front elevational view of thepreferred improved system of the invention (it being understood that thediagrammatic end elevational view and the diagrammatic rear elevationalview of the preferred improved system of the present invention are thesame as in FIGS. 3 and 4 of my copending US. application Ser. No.404,034),

FIG. 3 is a front elevational sectional view taken on section line 33 ofFIG. 5 of an articulated unit of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyorwith a bottle bottom dimple engageable pivot pin, 1

FIG. 4 is an end clevational sectional view taken on section line 44 ofFIG. 3,

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of a representative portion of the bottlebottom stabilizing conveyor,

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of the descending track section ofthe bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor.

FIG. 7 is an end elevational sectional view taken on section line 77 ofFIG. 6,

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor, I

FIG. 9 is a front clevational sectional view taken on section line 99 ofFIG. 8 of the spring take-up and support legs of the bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor, and

FIG. 10 is an elevational sectional view taken on section line 10I0 ofFIG. 9 of an adjustable support leg for the bottle bottom stabilizingconveyor.

The preferred ultra high speed bottle coating system of the inventionillustrated by FIGS. 1-10 of the drawings will be described inconjunction with the preferred ultra high speed bottle coating processof the invention for simplicity of presentation and ease ofunderstanding. There will first be described the high speed bottlecoating system and process of my copending U.S. application Ser. No.404,034 which are improvcd by the ultra high speed bottle coating systemand process of the present invention with particular reference beingmade to FIGS. I and 2 of this application and to FIGS. 1-4 of thatcopending application which have been incorporated by reference herein.

Cartons of bottles, such as a jug with a handle, are unloaded manuallyin an upright position from their cartons onto an unpacking table 1,which is a wide metal belt conveyor. The bottles are fed along theunpacking table in multi-files to a directional arm at the end of thetable which orients or directs the bottles in single file. The bottlesin single file are fed to a bottle belt conveyor 2 along which theytravel to a loading station 3. The bottle belt conveyor 2 meets inalignment at the loading station 3 with and directly beneath an overheadchuck conveyor 4. The speed of the bottle belt conveyor 2 and thespacing between the finish or neck of consecutive touching bottlestherealong are synchronized with the speed of the overhead chuckconveyor 4 and the spacing between consecutive chucks 5 therealong.

The overhead chuck conveyor 4 comprises a plurality of chucks 5separated from one another by spacers. Each chuck 5 comprises twovertical supporting shafts 6 with opposed rollers 7. Extendingdownwardly from the supporting shafts 6 and operatively connected to therollers 7 is a vertically retractable rod 8 having fixed thereon arotatable collar 9 which encloses chuck fingers l0.

At the loading station 3 the rollers 7 of the chucks 5 engage upwardlyinclined track fingers 11 which raise the retractable rod 8 and collar 9and thereby open the chuck fingers I0.

The bottle conveyor 2, which is vertically adjustable, is upwardlyinclined at the loading station 3 andaligned beneath the horizontaloverhead chuck conveyor 4 so that the finish or neck of each bottleengages the opened chuck fingers 10 of a chuck 5 toward the far end ofthe bottle conveyor 2. At the far end of the bottle conveyor 2 withinthe loading station 3 the chuck rollers 7 move along downwardly inclinedtrack fingers 12. This movement lowers the retractable rod 8 and collar9 and thereby closes the chuck fingers 10 into gripping engagement withthe finish or neck of a bottle.

The bottles, now suspended from the overhead chuck conveyor 4, travel toa prime coat spray booth l3 having an exhaust stack 14.

In the foreground of FIGS. I and 2 and facing the prime coat spray booth13 there are mounted reciprocating spray guns (not shown) connected to adrum (not shown) containing a prime coating composition. In the primecoat spray booth 13 the bottles are sprayed with the prime coatingcomposition while the bottles are rotated so as to apply the primecoating uniformly along all sides and the bottom of each bottle.Rotation of each bottle is achieved by rotating the collar 9 of thechuck 5 by engagement with a drive belt 15 which will rotate the bottleseither clockwise or counterclockwise depending upon the linear directionof movement of the belt 15.

The bottles are transported by the overhead chuck conveyor 4 from theprime coat spray booth 13 to a prime coat dryer 16 having an exhauststack 17 and equipped with heating lamps or elements (not shown). In theprime coat dryer 16, the prime coat is dried to an extent sufficient toreceive a top coat.

The prime coated bottles leave the prime coat dryer l6 and enter a firsttop coat spray booth 18 having an exhaust stack 19. The top coat spraybooth 18 has in.

the foreground of FIGS. 1 and 2 reciprocating spray guns (not shown)connected to a drum (not shown) containing a top coating composition,e.g.. grey paint. As the top coating composition is sprayed on thebotties, the bottles are rotated. either clockwise or counterclockwise,by engagement of the chuck collars 9 with a drive belt 20 so that thetop coating can be uniformly applied to that portion of the bottles atwhich the spray guns are directed, such as the bottoms and the lowerportion of the sidewalls.

The train of overhead suspended bottles passes from the first top coatspray booth 18 into a second top coat spray booth 21 having an exhauststack 22. In the foreground of FIGS. 1 and 2 there are mountedreciprocating spray guns (not shown) connected to a drum (not shown)containing a top coating composition. e.g.. brown paint. Such guns canbe directed at the upper portion of the sidewalls of the bottles andtheir handles so as to apply uniformly a top coating of a color whichcan be different from that applied to the bottom and lower portion ofthe bottles in the first top coat spray booth l8. s

As the top coat is applied to the bottles within the second top coatspray booth 21, the bottles are rotated in one direction, for example,clockwise, by engagement of the chuck collars 9 with a drive belt 23 andare then rotated in the opposite direction, for example,counterclockwise, by engagement of the chuck collars 9 with a drive belt24 moving in the opposite linear direction from that of drive belt 23.Thus the bottles are given a forward and reverse rotation by theoppositely moving drive belts 23 and 24. Such forward and reverserotation of the bottles enables all portions of the open handle of a jughandle bottle to have a top coat uniformly applied thereto.

The overhead chuck conveyor 4 carries the train of suspended bottlesfrom the second top coat spray booth 21 through a bottle bottom dryer 25having an exhaust stack 26. Therein the bottoms of the coated bottlesare dried to a nontacky state by passing over top of a heating element,such as a calrod heating coil (not shown).

The train of bottles passes from the bottle bottom dryer 25 into anunloading station. 27 which is the structural and operational reverse ofthe loading station 3. Thus at the unloading station 27, the collar 9 ofthe chucks 5 is retracted vertically by passage of the rollers 7 upinclined track fingers 28 (See FIG. 3 of my copending U.S. applicationScr. No. 404,034) and thereby opening the chuck fingers to deposit thebottles in an upright position upon a downwardly inclined single file.bottle belt conveyor 29. In view of the fact that the bottle bottomshave been previously dried to a nontacky state in the bottom bottledryer 25, the coating on the bottoms of the bottles is not unduly marredby depositing the bottles upon the bottle belt conveyor 29.

The bottles are conveyed in single file by the bottle belt conveyor 29to a multi-file bottle stacking station 30. Here the single file ofbottles is stacked manually or mechanically, for example, by a gangstacker, into multi-files on a wide metallic conveyor belt.

The multi-file of bottles is conveyed by the belt through an elongatedcuring oven 31 having a heating section 32 and a cooling section 33. Inthe curing oven 31, the coating on the bottles is dried and cured, e.g.,at 450F.600",F. for -5 minutes, respectively, by forced hot airconvection in the heating section 32 and then cooled down to atemperature at which they can be manually handled in a still or forcedair cooling section 33.

The bottles exit from the curing oven 31 onto a packing table 34 wherethey are manually packed into shipping cartons.

In the variations of the foregoing described system and process, theprime coat dryer 16 and the first and second top coat spray booths 18and 21 canbe omitted where desired, and the prime coat spray booth 13then used for applying a single coat to bottles in those instances whereboth a prime coat and one or more top coats are either unnecessary orundesired. In those instances where only a single top coat is necessaryor de sired, only the second top coat spray booth 21 can be omitted.Moreover, the forward and reverse bottle ro-- tator belts 23 and 24 inthe second top coat spray booth 21 could just as well be located in thefirst top coat spray booth 18. Also in those instances where bottles arecoated which do not have an open handle, the sec- 0nd top coat spraybooth 21 need have only a single or unidirectional bottle rotator.

There will now be'described the preferred embodiment of the improvementof the present invention upon the foregoing described system andprocess.

The improvement in the system comprises the prime coat spray booth 13,the prime coat dryer 16, the first top coat spray booth 18 and thesecond top coat spray booth 21 have a bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor35 with bottle bottom dimple engageable pivot pins 36 in synchronizedparallel alignment and registration with the bottle chucks 5 of theoverhead chuck conveyor 4. The bottle bottom stabilizing, conveyor 35has an ascending track section 37, e.g., a rise in track elevation ofabout 1 inch, adjacent the entry to the prime coat spray booth 13 forbringing the pivot pins 36 into engagement with the bottle bottomdimples 38 centrally located in the bottoms of the bottles and has adescend ing track section 39, e.g., a 'fall in track elevation of about1 inch, adjacent the exit from the second top coat spray booth 21 forbringing the pivot pins 36 out of engagement with the bottle bottomdimples 38. Each pivot pin 36 is spring-loaded by a spring 40 and has anotch 41 in its face and the descending track section 39 has an inclinedoverhead bar 42 in depression engagement with the notch 41 of eachspring-loaded pivot pin 36 for depressing the pivot pins 36 away fromthe bottom bottle dimples 38. Each pivot pin 36 has snapon snap-offmeans 43 for connecting it to a belt 44 of the bottle bottom stabilizingconveyor 35.

The improved process of the present invention comprises the modifiedstep or operation of rotating and Spray coating the suspended bottles atleast once while engaging the bottle bottom dimples 38 with stabilizingpivot pins 36.

The front course of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35 is aligneddirectly beneath and parallel to the front course of the overhead chuckconveyor 4 at the prime coat spray booth 13, the prime coat dryer 16,the first top coat spray booth 18 and the second top coat spray booth21. Thereat each pivot pin 36 is in registra tion with or directlybeneath a corresponding bottle chuck 5. The pivot pins 36 aresynchronized or run at the same linear speed as the bottle chucks 5,since the chain belt of the overhead chuck conveyor 4 and the chain belt44 of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35 are driven by means of asingle electrical motor 45 and have a common drive shaft 46 located atthe rear or return courses of the two superimposed conveyors.

In order that the belt 44 of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35can readily traverse the four horizontal curves 47 of the slotted track.48 as well as readily traverse the ascending track section 37 and thedescending track section 39, the belt 44 consists of articulated units.One such unit or segment has two opposed rollers 49 rotatable in ahorizontal plane about each end of a vertical axle 50 passing throughthe center of horizon tal links 51. Such a unit or segment is adjoinedto and alternates with an identical unit or segment having two opposedrollers 52 rotatable in a vertical plane and mounted at each end of ahorizontal axle 53 passing through the center of vertical links 54. Thehorizontal links 51 are connected together at their ends by verticalrods 55 passing between vertical links 54 which are in turn connectedtogether at their ends by horizontal rods 56 passing between horizontallinks 51 so as to provide in effect a universal joint. The verticallyrotatable rollers 52 ride along the bottom of the slotted track 48 whilethe horizontally rotatable rollers 49 ride along the walls of theslotted track 48, particularly at the curves 47.

The slotted track 48 of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor ismounted upon vertically adjustable stanchions or supporting legs 57 andis provided with two opposed telescoping spring take-up sections 58 sothat the track 48 and the floating belt 44 can ride horizontally uponrollers 59 which are moveable along horizontal channels 60 andthereby-adjust the tension on I the belt 44.

The overhead chuck conveyor 4 is preferably an inverted structuralversion of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35.

The rear or return course of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35lies directly beneath and is in alignment with a portion of the rearorreturn course of the overhead chuck conveyor 4 in order that the singleelectric drive motor 45 with its operatively connected drive shaft 46can drive synchroneously the belts of both of these two conveyors. Theouter side walls of the two slotted tracks of the two conveyors are openopposite the motor 45 so that the common drive shaft 46 locked to upperand lower sprockets 61 can drive upper and lower drive chains 62 whichare also carried around upper and lower idler sprockets 63 locked to acommon idler shaft 64. The drive chains 62 have mounted thereon aplurality of spaced drive dogs 65 which grip vertical axles 50.

The vertical support pins 66 attached to vertical rods 55 have mountedthereon a horizontal support plate 67 which has a vertical centralorifice 68. Within the orifice 68 there is mounted a stem 69 which fitswithin a cylindrical axial concavity 70 ofa pivot pin 36. Extendingupwardly from the cylindrical axial concavity 70 there is a smallercylindrical axial concavity in the pivot pin 36 which is in alignmentwith a cylindrical axial concavity 72 within the upper portion of thestem 69. A coil spring 40 is housed within the cylindrical axialconcavities 71 and 72 so as to spring-load the pivot pin 36.

The lower wall of the pivot pin 36 has a vertical guide slot 73. Withinthe guide slot 73 there is a guide screw 74 threaded into and attachedto a threaded horizontal orifice 75 within the upper portion of the stem69. By this arrangement the pivot pin 36 is depressible against thespring 40 and is guided along the stem 69 by guide screw 74 riding inthe vertical guide slot73.

The snap-on snap-off means 43 for connecting a pivot pin 36 to the belt44 of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35 comprises a set screw 76threaded into the front of the support plate 67 and intersecting theorifice 68. The set screw 76 has a cylindrical axial concavity 77housing therein a ball 78 loaded by a spring 79. The ball 78 is heldwithin the cylindrical axial concavity 77 by pinching or crimping theconcavity at its open end so that less than a hemispherical portion of 1the ball 78 extends or protrudes outwardly from the concavity 77. Theball 78 of the spring-loaded set screw 76 engages an aligned concaverecess 80 in the stem 69 within the orifice,68. A pivot pin 36 can bereadily removedfrom the support plate 67 by gripping the pivot pin 36and applying upward pressure against the springloaded ball 78 and henceany malfunctioning pivot pin 36 can be easily removed and replacedwithin a matter ing conveyor 35 comes into engagement with a bottomdimple 38 of a suspended bottle so as to act as a pivot point for thatbottle and prevent bottle wobble as the bottle traverses along thehorizontal portion of the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor 35 withinthe prime coat spray booth 13, the prime coat dryer 16, the first topcoat spray booth l8 and the second top coat spray booth 21, particularlywhen the bottle suspended by a bottle chuck 5 is spun or rotated bycontact of the bottle chuck collar 9 with the drive belt 15, 20, 23 and24 of the bottle rotators or spinners. Moreover, the bottles to be spraycoated can travel at a greater linear speed without danger of theirdropping from the bottle chucks caused by the rotational or centrifugalforce imparted by the bottle rotators.

As the bottles carried by the overhead chucks 5 of the overhead chuckconveyor 4 leave the second top coat spray booth 21, the pivot pins 36are brought out of engagement with the dimples 38 in the bottoms of thebottles due to the fact that the pivot pins 36 descend along thedescending track 'section 39 of the track 48 of the bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor 35.

In order to prevent marring of the wet spray coat on the bottom of abottle due to drag of the pivot pin 36 against the bottom of the bottlefrom the central dimple 38 to the edge of the bottle, the preferredembodiment of the improved system of 'the invention provides a pivot pin36 loaded with a compressible spring 40 and having opposed inclinednotches 41 which engage depression bars 42 mounted above the descendingtrack section 39 of the bottom bottle stabilizing conveyor 35.Engagement of the inclined notches 41 with the compression bar 42 forcesthe pivot pin 36 downwardly against the compressible coil spring 40 soas to promptly bring the pivot pin 36 out of contact or engagement withthe dimple 38 in the center of the bottle bottom.

The improved bottle coating system of the invention is capable ofoperating at an ultra high speed such that -1 00 bottles per minute ormore can be spray coated without wobble of the suspended bottles duringthe spray coating operation. Bottle wobble is prevented and'bottlebreakage is substantially eliminated because the bottles during most ofthe period of their suspension from the overhead chucks 5 are stabilizedor supported by the pivot pins 36.

In addition to the variations or embodiments of the improvement of theinvention described above, other variations or embodiments are alsopossible. For example, instead of providing the bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor 35 with an ascending track section 37 and adescending track section 39, the entire track 48 could be horizontal andthe overhead chuck conveyor 4 provided with descending and ascendingtrack sections immediately above where the ascending and descendingtrack sections 37 and 39, respectively, are eliminated. In such anarrangement the bottles carried by the overhead chuck conveyor 4 wouldthen be lowered upon the pivot pins 36 at the descending track sectionof the so-modified overhead chuck conveyor 4 and would be lifted off thepivot pins 36 at the ascending track section of the so-modified overheadchuck conveyor 4.

It will be appreciated that other variations and embodiments of theimprovement of the invention in addition to those discussed above can bemade by those skilled in the art without departing from the essence ofthe improved invention and accordingly the improved invention is to belimited only within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is: V

1. In a high speed bottle coating system comprising a sequentialsynchronized array of a bottle unpacking station, a single file bottlebelt conveyor, an overhead chuck conveyor bottle loading station, atleast one suspended bottle rotating and spray coat station, a bottlebottom dryer, an overhead chuck conveyor bottle unloading station, asingle file bottle belt conveyor, a multi-file bottle stacking station,a curing oven having heating and cooling sections and a bottle packingstation, the improvement which comprises said at least one suspendedbottle rotating and spray coat station having a bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor with bottle bottom dimple engageable pivot pins insynchronized parallel alignment and registration with bottle chucks ofthe overhead chuck conveyor.

2. The high speed bottle coating system defined by claim 1 wherein thebottle bottom stabilizing conveyor has an ascending track sectionadjacent the entry to the suspended bottle rotating and spray coatstation for bringing the pivot pins into engagement with the bottlebottom dimples and has a descending track section adjacent the exit fromthe suspended bottle rotating and spray coat station for bringing thepivot pins out of engagement with the bottle bottom dimples.

3. The high speed bottle coating system defined by claim 2 wherein eachpivot pin is spring-loaded and has a notch in its face and thedescending track section has an inclined overhead bar in depressionengagement with the notch of each spring-loaded pivot pin for depressingthe pivot pins away from the bottle bottom dimples.

4. The high speed bottle coating system defined by claim 1 wherein eachpivot pin has snap-on snap-off means 'for connecting it to a belt of thebottle bottom stabilizing conveyor.

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTIONPATENT NO. 3 902 45 DATED September 2, 1975 INVENTOR(S) DALE GEORGEFRISCHE It is certified that error appears in the above-identifiedpatent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

(301. 1, lines 16 and 17, "U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,249" should read U.S.Pat. No. 3,889,800'-; lines 30 and 31, "U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,716" shouldread U.S. Pat. No.: 3,869,249 lines 37 and 38 delete "now U. S PatentNo. 3,869 ,249",

Signed and Sealed this sixth D y of January 1976 [SEAL] Attest:

RUTH C. MASON C. MARSHALL DANN Arresting Officer Commissioner oj'Patentsand Trademarks

1. In a high speed bottle coating system comprising a sequentialsynchronized array of a bottle unpacking station, a single file bottlebelt conveyor, an overhead chuck conveyor bottle loading station, atleast one suspended bottle rotating and spray coat station, a bottlebottom dryer, an overhead chuck conveyor bottle unloading station, asingle file bottle belt conveyor, a multifile bottle stacking station, acuring oven having heating and cooling sections and a bottle packingstation, the improvement which comprises said at least one suspendedbottle rotating and spray coat station having a bottle bottomstabilizing conveyor with bottle bottom dimple engageable pivot pins insynchronized parallel alignment and registration with bottle chucks ofthe overhead chuck conveyor.
 2. The high speed bottle coating systemdefined by claim 1 wherein the bottle bottom stabilizing conveyor has anascending track section adjacent the entry to the suspended bottlerotating and spray coat station for bringing the pivot pins intoengagement with the bottle bottom dimples and has a descending tracksection adjacent the exit from the suspended bottle rotating and spraycoat station for bringing the pivot pins out of engagement with thebottle bottom dimples.
 3. The high speed bottle coating system definedby claim 2 wherein each pivot pin is spring-loaded and has a notch inits face and the descending track section has an inclined overhead barin depression engagement with the notch of each spring-loaded pivot pinfor depressing the pivot pins away from the bottle bottom dimples. 4.The high speed bottle coating system defined by claim 1 wherein eachpivot pin has snap-on snap-off means for connecting it to a belt of thebottle bottom stabilizing conveyor.